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Trump Announces Midterm GOP Convention 07/01 06:22
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Republicans will hold their
first-ever national convention ahead of November's midterm elections, an
unusual event aimed at boosting turnout in races that will decide whether the
party maintains control of Congress.
(AP) -- President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Republicans will hold
their first-ever national convention ahead of November's midterm elections, an
unusual event aimed at boosting turnout in races that will decide whether the
party maintains control of Congress.
The convention will be held in Dallas on Sept. 9 and 10.
Although both major parties traditionally hold blockbuster conventions
during presidential campaigns, Trump has long floated the idea of a similar
gathering this year to focus voters' attention on a sprawling collection of
House and Senate races.
If Democrats regain control of either chamber, they will be empowered to
block Trump's agenda and launch investigations into his administration for the
final two years of his term.
Republicans have only slim majorities in Congress, and the party in power
normally loses ground in the midterms. And without Trump on the ballot,
Republican leaders worry that it could be hard to galvanize their voters.
Trump hopes the convention would help change that dynamic, and he's been
talking about it since last year. He floated in a social media post that
Republicans would use the event "to show the great things we have done since
the Presidential Election of 2024."
"We will also have lots of Great Entertainment -- It will be a RALLY like
none other!" Trump wrote in a Truth Social post announcing the convention
details.
The Democratic National Committee considered hosting a similar midterm
convention but ultimately rejected the idea. An expensive soiree could have
strained the DNC's finances, which are struggling with lackluster fundraising
and millions in debt.
Democrats have said the GOP convention will be a chance for them to tie
Republican House and Senate candidates to Trump, whose approval rating is
underwater.
Locating the convention in Texas places a spotlight on the state's Senate
race, which pits Democratic nominee James Talarico against Republican nominee
Ken Paxton.
Paxton is the state attorney general who, with Trump's backing, defeated
longtime Sen. John Cornyn in a primary earlier this year. Republican Senate
leaders fear that Paxton's history of scandals -- including an extramarital
affair, an impeachment and a securities fraud case that did not lead to a
conviction -- could undermine his candidacy and turn a winnable race into a
drain on party resources.
It also highlights the aftereffects of Trump's mid-decade redistricting push
that began in Texas, an effort to secure more seats for Republicans in this
fall's elections.
The Republican National Committee began laying the groundwork earlier this
year, voting at its winter meeting in January to make such an event possible by
amending procedures centered around quadrennial presidential nominating
conventions.
Democrats considered holding a similar gathering ahead of the midterms but
tabled the idea. However, the party did hold such conferences in the 1970s and
1980s.
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